The Difference
by DxCxS2
Summary: "Look babe, I don't want to hurt your feelings" Duncan starts "But I'm just being honest. You don't really know her." Duncan and Gwen talk about Courtney on the plane before they leave for Australia. After the discussion, Gwen runs into Heather.
1. Her and I

**Another one-shot, but this one is canon. It takes place before Picnic Hanging at the Dork.**

"Favorite way to imagine Chris dying" Duncan asks. Gwen glances up at the ceiling in thought. Duncan smirks. They're sitting in the back of the plane alone, the other contestants are elsewhere.

"I picture pushing him off the plane a lot" Gwen answers.

"Mmm" Duncan begins, his arm lazily draped around Gwen "Realistic, respectable. Drowning him in hair gel. His hair gel."

"That's perfect!" she laughs. "Okay, okay. People you hate the most."

"Huh" Duncan says, removing his arm from Gwen as he leans forward and thinks. "I think Tyler, and Harold. But I hate Harold way more than Tyler. It's just his existence."

"I didn't notice" Gwen teases in a monotone voice.

"Whatever" Duncan chuckles "Your turn babe."

"Heather and Courtney" Gwen replies "No question. I hate how they are so used to having things given to them that they always have to get their way."

"Well that's stupid" Duncan comments.

"I know, right?" Gwen agrees, but Duncan shakes his head.

"No that you think that" Duncan explains, but Gwen's eyebrows furrow.

"What does that mean?" she shoots, uncomfortable and confused.

Duncan sighs "Not trying to piss you off babe, but you are kind of wrong."

"How am I wrong?" Gwen asks, trying to be civil.

"Well first off, Courtney isn't used to having things given to her. Heather was but Courtney has never. She's the type of person who's gotten her way through hard work and force. She really doesn't understand any other way."

"Is there a second?" Gwen snaps.

"Look babe, I don't want to hurt your feelings" Duncan starts "But I'm just being honest. You don't really know her."

"Yeah I do!" Gwen argues "Have you seen the way she's been acting? Throwing fits, crying, attempting to attack me!"

"She's upset" Duncan replies "You did make out with her boyfriend." He means for this to be playful, but Gwen doesn't receive it that way.

"And then she went crazy!" Gwen snaps. "How are you defending her? She wants to shove you off the plane too!"

"I cheated on her." He shrugs. "You can't condemn a person for a short period of irritation" he says. Then he smiles "Well in court you can." Gwen shifts uncomfortably as he says this. "You've got to look at their history."

"Well I think she's a bratty little bitch, and will always be" Gwen declares, wanting to hold her ground. Duncan's smile fades.

"Look babe I like you a lot" he tells her "But honestly don't talk about things you don't know a shit about." She's shocked by the anger in his voice. She doesn't think she's ever heard him like this before. Maybe once. Maybe on the Island. And she remembers it clearly, a video they were shone after the Xtreme Torture challenge. She glares at him.

"I know exactly what I'm talking about" she snaps.

"Babe, I don't want to fight about this" he says, his voice softer, but his eyes just as stern.

"Fine, but it's because I'm right" Gwen replies, looking for affirmation. Instead Duncan rolls his eyes and leans back in his seat.

"We should get some sleep. We'll be in Australia in a few hours." He closes his eyes, and she gets up to go to the bathroom. To cool off. This isn't something to fight about. AS she walks away she hears him mumble something along the lines of 'can't even make a decent argument." She tenses when she realizes who he sounds like.

She has to walk through a good portion of the plane before she reaches the bathroom. There are a lot of the people along the way. Sierra is cradling Cody. Alejandro is now where to be found. Courtney is asleep, her eyes red and puffy. Gwen looks away quickly rushing the bathroom so she can get back to Duncan and away from all this.

She opens the door to Heather.

"Can't even lock a door?" she says, waiting for Heather's haughty retort. But she doesn't receive one.

"You know you were her friend" Heather finally says stepping out of Gwen's way. Gwen realizes she must have heard most of their conversation.

"Yeah and she wants to push me off the plane" Gwen argues, not moving.

"It's not as if she doesn't have a reason" Heather answers, stepping around Gwen. Gwen spins around.

"It wasn't just me!" Gwen shouts, forgetting about the sleeping people "He did it too!"

"And if she doesn't have the guts to push him off" Heather says, still walking, not turning back, and giving Gwen a slight wave. "I'll do it for her."

Gwen uses the bathroom, thinking about Heather. Heather defending someone. Heather offering to do something to help someone else. It had to be a strategy she thought. Why would she help Courtney? Courtney was terrible! Sure they were friends before, but things change. A strategy to look like the good guy, while kicking off all her real competitors.

When Gwen is walking back, she sees something beyond unusual. In all there time on the plane Heather has never slept next to Courtney, but Gwen finds her right next to Courtney. And suddenly Gwen remembers when Heather kissed Trent. She starts to feel like Heather. Her skin crawls, because the difference was, Heather wasn't her friend, but Courtney, Courtney was.

**I really hope Total Drama 5 changes all of this…I'm mad at so many characters, but I'm 100% for Courtney/Heather friendship.**

**This episode really was just frustrating (the Australia one) Like great Gwen DON'T communicate with your boyfriend, just use Cody.**

**ANYWAYS SO MANY FEELINGS Please review!**


	2. Her and him

**Originally a one shot- now it's a two shot! I felt like it wasn't finished, like there were holes and so here it is! It's not as fluid, but there were too many holes**

**Have you guys heard about Duncney week? Visit duncneyweek on tumblr (duncneyweek is the url)! And submit some prompts! And write some stories! It's on August 19****th****!**

Gwen sits next to Duncan, unable to sleep. She was hoping he would be awake, but he was fast asleep. Gwen glances at him, but looks away, frustrated. She's not sure what she wanted to say, but she knows she isn't done. This isn't done. Not by a long shot.

She wants to close her eyes and think about Duncan, think about her friends, think about home, but all she thinks about is Courtney. Little moments run through her mind, comments she had glanced over, explanations she hadn't really paid attention to.

"I can't believe we willingly came back to the show" Courtney said to her after their horrific trip to the Amazon.

"I know" Gwen groaned in agreement, "But Heather's new tooth?" she smiled. "I wouldn't have missed that for the world."

"Can't disagree with that" Courtney laughed. They were silent for a while, really realizing what they had gotten themselves into. And back then, it had only just begun.

"What would you do with the money if you won?" Gwen asked, really wondering what her answer could be. Gwen wasn't even quite sure what her answer would be.

"Paying for my future college tuition" Courtney replied faster than Gwen was prepared for. "It's a lot of money…undergraduate school and then law school. I've been working for it all my life and honestly" she paused "A break would be nice."

The words ring so clear now that Gwen cringes in her seat. Her mind quickly remembers a moment in which Courtney had commented about lawyers always taking their 'fair' share. She presses her head into the back of her seat and tries to think of anything else. But she can't, and something in her stirs, something that makes her think it's a good idea to go see Courtney. She looks over at Duncan, who is still asleep, and gets up moving silently through the airplane.

It's not long before she sees Courtney. Heather is still asleep next to her, and Courtney's eyes are still red and puffy. For a moment Gwen wonders how she gets them to look so normal in the morning. Are her eyes like this every night? Gwen feels the guilt boiling inside of her.

"Yeah I just can't wait to see him" Courtney said, more dreamily than usual, and once again Gwen felt more uncomfortable than usual. But she tried to shrug it off.

"You know I always thought it was weird that Duncan gave you a skull when you left the island" Gwen responded. She had only just recently watched their time on the Island, and it seemed odd. "It didn't seem like something you'd be into…" Gwen noticed the jealousy in herself, but she ignored it.

"Well it wasn't really" Courtney began, a large smile on her face "I mean, I really liked it because he gave it to me, but I didn't understand it." Gwen wanted to know, and didn't at the same time, but she hung on Courtney's words. "After Action, he finally explained it to me. He said that there were, and would be guys who would try and give me necklaces, and rings, but he- He didn't want to fall in line with them, just another guy. He wanted me to have something he had made, a little piece of him."

"Wow" Gwen replied "That's…deeper than I would have expected."

"That's one of the things about Duncan that just gets me" Courtney beamed "It's not every day, but he'll just… he's a lot more than meets the eye."

Gwen feels that same jealousy in her now, but she knows it's not reasonable. She's dating Duncan, not Courtney. He chose her, not Courtney.

Then it dawns on her when Courtney shifts, and her tattoo is partially exposed. She's always glanced over Duncan's, not really minded it until now. Duncan has a few tattoos, but none with that weight. Most were dares, or presents from his brothers, but he and Courtney have matching tattoos...

They were a couple, a real couple. Not like Gwen and Trent, short lived and uncomfortable. They dated for a long time, they met each other's families, Courtney got a tattoo! It's heavy on Gwen's chest and she tears herself away and heads back to Duncan, but even next to him is hostile now.

She glances at him. Duncan knows her better than anyone on this plane. She bites back tears when she thinks that Courtney probably knows Duncan better than her. But she can't. Gwen starts to get angry, and she isn't sure why. Courtney let this happen. She's the reason Duncan left, they weren't right together, they were too different. Weren't they?

They are both forceful, both alpha dogs, both smart, both bullies, both full of pride, both determined and goal oriented, both athletic, both opinionated, both loud, both extreme, both wild, both fiery-

Gwen's jealousy turns to rage. Rage towards Courtney. How could she do this to Gwen? Wasn't she Gwen's friend too? Shouldn't she understand that sometimes, sometimes these things happen? They could have been friends. It wasn't her fault they weren't friends. It was Duncan's, but Duncan was over it. It was Courtney's.

So Gwen half sleeps, and she half thinks about the difference between her and Heather. The difference between her and Duncan. The difference between her and Courtney.

**Thanks for reading! I hope you liked it! Please review! This really is the end of my two shot, but I might start some drabbles. But review and check out Duncney Week!**


End file.
